When one thinks of St. Patrick’s Day visions of green Irish shamrocks come to mind. Did you know there is no such thing as a Shamrock Plant? The word shamrock comes from the Irish word “seamrog” meaning little clover.
A shamrock is defined as a plant that is composed of three leaflets. Irish legend has it that the missionary St. Patrick demonstrated the principle behind the doctrine of the Trinity (Father, Son, and Holy Ghost) using a shamrock. He did this by pointing to the three leaflets united by a common stem.
The shamrock is now used as the emblem of Ireland. An artificial or a fresh shamrock is customarily worn on St. Patrick’s Day. But there is no way of determining with certainty the exact plant referred to in the legend. So consequently in St. Patrick’s Day celebrations a number of plants serve as Irish shamrocks.
White clover, Trifolium repens, is considered by many authorities to be the plant most often referred to as a shamrock by the Irish. It is a creeping white flowered perennial. The plant grows from the tip by sending out runners that take root. Seeds are produced in a white fluffy flower head. This is the same clover or a variety of it that is found in yards and gardens. Many times it is thought of as a nuisance.

When the rare fourth leaflet occurs you have the “Lucky” four-leaflet clover. So four leaflet clovers cannot technically be considered shamrocks. But four-leaflet clovers are considered to be lucky charms. This goes back from pre-Christianity to pagan times when four- leaflet clovers were Celtic charms. Their status as Celtic charms is the origin of the modern belief in their power to bestow good luck.
Various members of the wood sorrel family (Oxalis) are sold as shamrocks for St. Patrick’s Day. Oxalis plants look like clover and are more easily cultivated as houseplants than real clover. This makes them popular for decorating during St. Patrick’s Day celebrations.
There are several varieties of wood sorrel, native plants that are common throughout the United States.

A wood sorrel is found in yards and gardens. It is a nuisance in that it is hard to pull every little root as the plant clings to the ground. If one does not get it all, back it comes. It has a small yellow flower. Seeds are tiny and are ejected quite a distance from the pod causing it to spread widely.
Most of the cultivated Oxalis are from South Africa or South America, depending on the variety. Most of the cultivated kinds are tropical herbs used as window or container grown plants. Many are being featured in catalogs as under plantings in containers or around tall annual plants such as glads or cannas.
The leaves are clover like and respond to darkness by folding back their leaflets. One source said some oxalis species have long been used for salads and greens because of their pleasant acid taste.
Oxalis varieties come with a variety of leaf colors. All shades of green are common but recent introductions have purple or dark burgundy leafs.

An unusual one “Sunset Velvet” is said to have leaves that are orange, gold, pink and coppery yellow in the spring. As the plant matures the leaves soften towards a lime green. In the fall the leaves turn a deep magenta. Blooms on Oxalis can be white, pink, yellow, or purple.
There are many oxalis varieties listed in garden catalogs. You will also find them at garden centers. Most are sold as rhizomes. They are easy to plant and grow. Most prefer semi-shade and moist soil. They multiply rapidly and you will have many rhizomes to plant the next year.
If you want to make sure your oxalis has four leaflets for good luck, plant Oxalis deppei, which is widely sold as the good luck plant. It always bears a leaf that has four leaflets. Some catalogs advertise it as the “Shamrock Plant”.
Confused? What wood sorrels, oxalis, and clovers have in common is a trifoliate leaf structure a compound leaf structure of three leaflets. That is the significant number to make it referred to as a shamrock.

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